Thai Coconut-Braised Chicken & Potatoes

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Oven-braising in delicious Thai-spiced coconut milk makes the juiciest chicken and creamiest potatoes. Who doesn’t love roast chicken and potatoes for dinner?!

Winner, winner, chicken dinner, and with potatoes. Now, that’s a true winner combo! I love a good roast chicken and potatoes meal. It’s one of the easiest thing to do when the temps start to drop and you are comfortable turning on the oven in the evening. I love experimenting with dry rubs and marinades for roast chicken but recently, I’ve found that braising is the best way to go.

Braising is the method of cooking meat using a combination of dry heat and moisture. The meat is first seared in a pan, then cooked slowly in liquid, either on the stove-top or in the oven. Root vegetables take well to braising too, especially potatoes. In this recipe, we will braise chicken thighs and potatoes in Thai-spiced coconut milk. I’ll show you how in just a bit.

But first, let’s talk potatoes. They are one of my absolute favorite ingredient to cook with. Potatoes are versatile, inexpensive and easily available. A basket of spuds in the pantry means that you are never far from a quick meal. Every cuisine in the world has multiple uses for potatoes. They can be boiled, baked, mashed, stewed, and of course, fried!

Did you know that there are over 200 kinds of potatoes categorized into 7 varieties sold in the USA? Red potatoes are one of the most versatile kind of potatoes. I love their creamy texture and red skin. The best thing about them is that the flesh stays firm while roasting, baking, stewing, or in this case, braising. Learn all about potato goodness here.

To make this Thai coconut braised chicken and potatoes, we begin by roasting the potatoes slightly just so the skin is wrinkled slightly and the potatoes start to become tender. They can then finish cooking in the coconut milk along with the chicken. This pre-roasting step is completely optional, but I like to do it. The potatoes roast in the oven while the chicken gets seared on the stove-top, so there’s no extra time involved.

Once you have the chicken seared, we can prep the braising liquid. Coconut milk is added to lightly sautéed onions, ginger, garlic and chilies. I add some red chili flakes if I feel like spicing things up a bit. A splash of soy sauce and fish sauce gives the sauce a distinct Thai flavor. I also add a small bunch of cilantro and remove it before serving.

I like to use a pan that can go straight from the stove-top to the oven. Thats’s always better at clean-up, right? Now, if you do not have an oven, you can actually cover the pan and finish braising on the stove. Otherwise, cover the pan and stick it in the oven. Take the cover off during the last half of cooking to allow the chicken and potatoes to brown.

Look at that chicken and potatoes, will you? Doesn’t it look juicy and creamy? A squeeze of lime juice over the oven-braised chicken simply takes it over the top.

Strain the coconut milk sauce to serve along with the chicken. Chicken and potatoes with sauce made all in one pan? Now, that’s my kind of easy weeknight meal. I like to serve this with a side of buttered dinner rolls or some kind of crusty bread. But plain jasmine rice would go well with Thai roast chicken too.

Here’s the recipe for Thai Coconut Milk Braised Chicken & Potatoes.

Thai Coconut-Braised Chicken & Potatoes

 

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Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

40 mins

Total time

1 hour 10 mins

 

Oven-braising in delicious Thai-spiced coconut milk makes the juiciest chicken and creamiest potatoes. Who doesn't love roast chicken and potatoes for dinner?!

Author: Anjana Devasahayam

Recipe type: Main, Entree

Cuisine: Thai

Serves: 3

You will need:

For spice rub/marinade,

• Red chili flakes - 1 tablespoon
• Ground black pepper - 1 tablespoon
• Cumin powder - 2 teaspoon
• Salt - 1 teaspoon

For braised chicken & potatoes,

• Chicken thighs - 3, bone-in
• Red potatoes - 6, quartered
• Oil - 3 tbsp, divided
• Red onion - ¼ cup, thinly sliced
• Garlic - 4-5 cloves, smashed
• Ginger - 2 tablespoon, chopped
• Green chilies - 2, slit lengthwise
• Coconut milk - 1½ cups
• Soy sauce - 1 tablespoon
• Fish sauce - ¼ teaspoon
• Salt - to taste
• Cilantro - 3-4 stalks
• Lime juice - 1 teaspoon

How to:

1. Mix the ingredients for spice rub in a small bowl.
2. Pre-heat oven to 350°F.
3. In a baking pan, toss the red potatoes with a tablespoon of oil and a generous pinch of the spice rub. Bake in oven while you prep the other ingredients, around 15-20 minutes.
4. Rub spice rub liberally all over the chicken.
5. Heat the rest of the oil in a large pan like a skillet with tall sides or a Dutch oven. Place chicken skin side down and allow to brown slightly, around 5 minutes. Flip and repeat on the other side. Remove chicken to a plate and set aside.
6. Add onions, garlic, ginger and chilies to the pan. Saute lightly till softened and fragrant.
7. Add coconut milk, soy sauce, fish sauce and salt to taste. Be careful with the salt since we are already using soy and fish sauces.
8. Return the seared chicken to pan, skin side up. Remove potatoes from oven and nestle among the chicken. Add the cilantro stalks to the pan as well.
9. Cover pan with an oven-proof lid or foil and bake in oven for 20 minutes. Remove the lid and bake for another 10-15 minutes or till chicken and potatoes are done. Broil for the last 2-3 minutes to crisp up the skin, if desired.
10. Remove pan from oven, discard cilantro leaves and drizzle lime juice on top.
11. Remove chicken and potatoes to a serving platter. Strain the coconut milk sauce and serve along with chicken and potatoes. Serve hot with bread or rice.

Notes:

1. Taste the coconut milk and add more red chili flakes if you like it hotter.
2. The coconut sauce thickens upon standing, but if you want it very thick, boil it on the stove-top for a few minutes.

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Do you like roast chicken? Have you tried braising? Do try this Thai inspired braised chicken and potatoes and let me know how you like it.

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